The Simplicity of Nutrition for Christians

2 Verses + 2 Questions = Simple, Natural Health

Believe it or not, Christians have it made when it comes to the topic of nutrition.

I know, I know… the world has made nutrition extremely complex and confusing. Some diet book says eat carbs. That diet book says don’t eat carbs. Another diet book says eat fat. A different diet book says don’t eat fat. And, of course, there are diet books that talk about protein, cabbage soup, cleansing, grapefruits, organic foods, and more.

From a worldly perspective, it is exhausting, confusing, and actually quite annoying.

But… good news! YOU are a Christian, and so it is very simple!

There is a combination of two Bible verses that really clarify a Christian’s perspective on what to do about their nutrition. Here they are:

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

~ 1 Corinthians 6: 19-20

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

~ I Corinthians 10:31

Pretty simple, right? Let’s look at the verses in a little more detail.

In the first verse, the Bible is clear that our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit and that we are to honor God with our bodies. The second verse explains that no matter what we do, we are to do it for the glory of God.

So, a quick summary before we move on. Ready for it? It’s not rocket science…

Take care of your body, and do it for the glory of God.

Now, I need to clarify something right away. The context of the second verse in the Bible is from a portion in I Corinthians where Paul is discussing the concern that early Christians had about eating food that had possibly been sacrificed to idols.

Paul explains that we are to eat and drink with a clear conscience, doing everything to the glory of God. However, if a non-believer told you that the food had been sacrificed to an idol, then Paul made it clear that it should not be eaten. The reason why may surprise you, though!

Paul said the reason we should not eat food sacrificed to idols is technically not because something is “wrong” with the food. Instead, the reason is because in the mind of the non-believer who offered it, the food and your participation in eating it would be glorifying an idol. Obviously, as Christians, we want to be a witness and testimony to Jesus Christ, so we would need to politely (or boldly) refuse.

Let’s read the verse again, and note the emphasis this time that I have added.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it allfor the glory of God.”

~ I Corinthians 10:31

Remember the summary earlier? “Take care of your body, and do it for the glory of God.”

That is it, in a nutshell.

Any confusion after that is created by the craziness of the world. And since I’m aware that there IS a lot of confusion created by all the billion dollar food corporations and diet marketing gurus out there, I’ll leave you with two more questions that will help you clarify what to do about nutrition as a Christian. Here they are:

Question #1: “Is what I’m about to eat or drink in the form that it was created by God?”

Alternative Question: “Is what I’m about to eat or drink unaltered by some giant, profit-seeking company who could absolutely care less about my health?”

Here are a few example answers to either question:

Water and natural green tea: Yes

Just about every other drink: No

Cooked cuts of meat, directly from the animal: Yes

Processed, chemical-laden, preserved meat: No

Raw Nuts: Yes

Sugar- and chocolate- and other assorted- coated nuts: No

Natural vegetables: Yes

Fried vegetables: No

Raw fruit: Yes

Processed and canned fruits and fruit juices: No

Whole grains: Yes

Processed, refined grains stripped of vitamins, fiber, or minerals: No

Finally, I’ll leave you with one final note, which will be expanded on in the coming Fit For Jesus program.

If you answer the two questions listed above with “Yes” 90-95% of the time you eat, then you will be WELL on your way to getting Fit For Jesus.

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Jeremy Nelms is a wee bit passionate about reaching 1 MILLION Christians with the message of "Fitness Focused on Eternity" and helping 1000 people change their lives by visiting Mount Everest (not climbing it! HA!)

I think that the glory of God should be the ultimate motive and intent for every decision we make. It makes it easy to determine our ethical choices and makes for a pure and basic standard of living, speakng, thinking, and relating. Humanity, on a universal perspective, searches for his creator, but only by the revelation of that creator can humanity know his creator, and himslef. Good nutrition, motivated by the glorification of God, can be beneficial to the world, and we are called to glorify him in what we do. No need to go abraod on a missionary, or write an astonishing check. Just work for Christ, leasure for Christ, eat for Christ, drink for Christ, wake for Christ, sleep for Chirst, etc., and all that behold your life will know Christ and become as for him as well. Thank you for your website.

Paul, thank you for your question. I know there are a lot of people to wade through, but Precision Nutrition is the company that I have hired for my personal coaching, and the link below is to the UK Precision Nutrition certified professionals.